Bourbon County Brand Barleywine
Goose Island Beer Company in Chicago, Illinois, United States 🇺🇸
Barley Wine - Barley Rotating Out of Production|
Score
8.14
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Aged in the second-use barrels that were once home to Kentucky bourbon, this traditional English-style barleywine possesses the subtlety of flavor that only comes from a barrel that’s gone through many seasons of ritual care. This year’s variant will pick up more bourbon barrel character by switching from third to second use barrels. The intricacies of the previous barrel denizens – oak, charcoal, hints of tobacco and vanilla, and that signature bourbon heat – are all present in this beer. Hearty and complex, Bourbon County Brand Barleywine is a titan and a timeline; a bold, flavorful journey through the craft of barrel aging.
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8.5/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8.5
Flavor 8.5
Texture 8
Overall 9
27 February 2026. BCBS Tasting @ Stacks (Sint-Kruis). Cheers to Ward for hosting the event!
Hazy dark brown, virtually no head. Candied date & fig, nougat, vanilla, bourbon, fruit cake, plum jam, rum-soaked raisin. Very sweet raisin, date & fig in a thick malt body of toffee, vanilla and brown sugar, lightly toasty as well, touch of coffee somewhere. Herbal hops in the finish, lots of dried fruits lingering, toffee and oaky vanilla with warming bourbon alcohol. Full body, oily-sticky texture, soft carbonation. Complex and elegant and surprisingly (dangerously) drinkable at this ABV.
Hazy dark brown, virtually no head. Candied date & fig, nougat, vanilla, bourbon, fruit cake, plum jam, rum-soaked raisin. Very sweet raisin, date & fig in a thick malt body of toffee, vanilla and brown sugar, lightly toasty as well, touch of coffee somewhere. Herbal hops in the finish, lots of dried fruits lingering, toffee and oaky vanilla with warming bourbon alcohol. Full body, oily-sticky texture, soft carbonation. Complex and elegant and surprisingly (dangerously) drinkable at this ABV.
Tried
on 27 Feb 2026
at 14:41
8.5/10
Tried
from Bottle
on 03 Jan 2026
at 19:13
4.2/10
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Appearance 4
Aroma 9
Flavor 8
Texture 4
Overall 17
On tap at the ChurchKey, DC. A dark Mahogany body with a light tan head. A sumptuous nose includes bourbon, chocolate, berries and some acidity. The taste is intense, again featuring bourbon warmth and dark berries. Other elements include cherries, chocolate, caramel, some bitterness and acidity. The acidity plays well against the rich sweet elements.
Tried
from Draft
on 23 Sep 2025
at 20:05
8.6/10
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Appearance 7
Aroma 9
Flavor 9
Texture 9
Overall 8.5
Brown colour, minimal ecru-ish lacing; aroma and taste of dried cherry, some vanilla, chocolate, nutmeg and se Bourbon notes; quite good one
Tried
on 28 Jul 2025
at 20:41
8.8/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 9
Texture 10
Overall 9
Bottled many thanks to Lore. Brown body with a thin beige head. Aroma and taste of orange zest, nutmeg, oak, bourbon, vanilla and aome booze. Well rounded, complex barleywine. Wow!
Tried
from Bottle
on 28 Jul 2025
at 20:34
![McDermottDrink's photo of Bourbon County Brand Barleywine (2014) [12.3%]](/user_uploads/beer_tick_images/1751084533-1327-358284.webp)
8.1/10
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Appearance 7
Aroma 8.5
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8.5
2014 12 oz bottle. 12.3% abv on label."Bottled 18SEP14". First time I've popped one of the barleywines. Pours deep brown, with no head. Slightly viscous legs when I swirl the glass. Noses has the same bourbon hit that I get from their BCStout, just mellower. Also an edge of cherry and apple. Big malts come up in the taste, but there is also a sherry note from oxidation perhaps. Some of that tart cherry is there in the taste. Bourbon notes as well. Thick coating on the lips. Does stand apart from their usual imperial stouts.
Tried
from Bottle
on 28 Jun 2025
at 04:22
9/10
Black Friday. Black as my heart.
It's like if velvet from London Fog was made into a beer
It's like if velvet from London Fog was made into a beer
Tried
on 13 Dec 2024
at 18:34
6/10
Aged less well than the 2013, this one turned to boozy wet cardboard.
Tried
from Bottle
on 25 Oct 2024
at 23:34
8/10
Smells very harsh but the taste has aged fantastically. The bourbon has mellowed a bit, but it’s a full semisweet toffee and barley body that finishes quite smooth.
Tried
from Bottle
on 25 Oct 2024
at 23:32
8.1/10
—
Appearance 7
Aroma 9
Flavor 7
Texture 9
Overall 8.5
Geringe Karbonisierung. Milde Süße, intensiv malziger Beginn, cremig, zunehmend Schokolade, angenehme Röstnoten. Erkennbarer weicher Alkohol, cremig bleibend, wenig Kaffee. Intensiv, langer malziger Abgang, lecker! 10/13/11/13/11/13
Tried
from Bottle
on 06 Sep 2024
at 20:43